PHILOSOPHER

Han Fei

280 BC - 232 BC

Photo of Han Fei

Icon of person Han Fei

Han Fei (c. 280 – 233 BC), also known as Han Feizi, was a Chinese Legalist philosopher and statesman during the Warring States period. He was a prince of the state of Han. Han Fei is often considered the greatest representative of Legalism for the Han Feizi, a later anthology of writings traditionally attributed to him, which synthesized the methods of his predecessors. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Han Fei has received more than 563,566 page views. His biography is available in 57 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 52 in 2019). Han Fei is the 164th most popular philosopher (up from 182nd in 2019), the 60th most popular biography from China (up from 66th in 2019) and the 8th most popular Chinese Philosopher.

Han Fei is most famous for his philosophy of Legalism, which advocates strict adherence to the law and harsh punishment for those who disobey.

Memorability Metrics

  • 560k

    Page Views (PV)

  • 69.94

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 57

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 5.96

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 3.65

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Among PHILOSOPHERS

Among philosophers, Han Fei ranks 164 out of 1,267. Before him are Ferdinand Tönnies, John Wycliffe, Hippias, Chrysippus, Sextus Empiricus, and Kabir. After him are Jean Buridan, Jean Baudrillard, Jiddu Krishnamurti, Max Horkheimer, Cesare Beccaria, and Athanasius Kircher.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 280 BC, Han Fei ranks 2. Before him is Li Si. After him are Livius Andronicus, Philo of Byzantium, Arsaces I of Parthia, Conon of Samos, Pyrrhus II of Epirus, Nicomedes, Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, and Ariamnes of Cappadocia. Among people deceased in 232 BC, Han Fei ranks 2. Before him is Ashoka. After him is Cleanthes.

Others Born in 280 BC

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Others Deceased in 232 BC

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  • Photo of Ashoka

    Ashoka

    POLITICIAN

    304 BC - 232 BC

    HPI: 81.57

    Rank: 1

  • Photo of Han Fei

    Han Fei

    PHILOSOPHER

    280 BC - 232 BC

    HPI: 69.94

    Rank: 2

  • Photo of Cleanthes

    Cleanthes

    PHILOSOPHER

    330 BC - 232 BC

    HPI: 66.74

    Rank: 3

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In China

Among people born in China, Han Fei ranks 60 out of 1,610. Before him are Emperor Gaozu of Tang (566), Li Ching-Yuen (1677), Sima Yi (179), Li Si (-280), Xiang Yu (-232), and Gao Xingjian (1940). After him are Xuande Emperor (1399), Guangxu Emperor (1871), Shang Yang (-390), Zhang Fei (167), Jiang Qing (1914), and Liu Shaoqi (1898).

Others born in China

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Among PHILOSOPHERS In China

Among philosophers born in China, Han Fei ranks 8. Before him are Sun Tzu (-544), Laozi (-604), Mencius (-372), Zhuang Zhou (-369), Zhu Xi (1130), and Mozi (-470). After him are Xun Kuang (-313), Milarepa (1052), Shen Kuo (1031), Wang Yangming (1472), Guan Zhong (-720), and Han Yu (768).

Chinese born Philosophers

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